


Long distance can’t keep us apart

by Marvel_ly_strange



Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Add tags as I go, Ashes Scene in Avengers: Infinity War Part 1, Gen, Infinity War happens, M/M, Sorry again, Sorry guys, Starts in College, YALL ALREADY KNOW, angsty with happy ending tho, bruce and Thor are boyfriends, fluff in the beginning, sorta time skip ish to infinity war, that happens, the character death is the infinity war stuff, thor and Bruce are later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-02 02:23:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17879300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marvel_ly_strange/pseuds/Marvel_ly_strange
Summary: Tony and Stephen meet in College before Stephen works at a hospital. They hit it off there, and keep in touch throughout because of their busy schedules. Then stephen gets into his accident and goes MIA. Tony doesn’t hear from him till infinity war starts. He just gets him back and then...





	1. Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Hey!! This is my first ever fic, pls b careful haha. Anyway, leave suggestions in the comments or anything :) I’d like your feedback! Updates will not be on a schedule, just when I finish. Will be within 1 day to a week though. Can promise that. Unless stated in last chapter. Enjoy!!!! ;)!!!

The music was blasting so loud Tony could feel the beat in his chest. The different colored strobe lights cast a purple hue around the room where the life of the party was. People were dancing and talking and just having fun. 

Life at MIT was not really what Tony expected. He thought it was going to be all sciencey, which it was, but it was also very fun. There were plenty of parties to indulge himself in, and there was alcohol. 

Tony and his friends, Bruce Banner and James Rhodes, were having a blast at their own house party.

The three were roommates, and they threw the party because finals were finally finished for the year. Bruce was talking about how one of his friends from high school was going to come visit and stay with them for the summer. 

“He should be here soon,” Bruce said, checking his watch. He was muttering something under his breath about not knowing it was today. The young, anxious scientist, or nerd boy as Tony liked to call him, was frantically looking for this new guest.

Bruce suddenly smiled brightly and motioned for someone to come over to their little group. Tony was busy talking to Rhodey about how they think they did, when the party got quieter than usual. Tony looked up, and saw why everyone stopped speaking.

The person was elegant, with highly defined cheekbones and eyes like gemstones. Turquoise, to be exact. He was wearing a black turtleneck with grey jeans that fit his tall, lanky body very well. 

Tony was glad that the light in here looked purple, because he would have looked like a flustered idiot if it was normal.

“Stephen! I’m so glad you’re here. I, uh, didn’t know you were coming, like today today, but I’m still glad you’re here!” Bruce exclaimed.

“Bruce, I gave you an exact date,” Stephen said with a slight smile on his lips, “ I’m not sure how you could have forgotten, but here we are.”  
Stephen glanced at the other two people next to his friend. 

“Hi, I’m Stephen Strange. Not sure if you, uh, knew if I was coming today,” Stephen introduced himself, and suddenly the chatter went back up again, almost as if they were waiting for his name..

“H-hey. I’m Tony, and this is Rhodey,” Tony stammered. God, why was he acting like this? And when did he stutter in front of people? He is Tony fucking Stark. He does not stutter.

“Yeah, I know you, Stark. Got in early, yeah?” Stephen smirked. Damn, Tony wanted to slap him and kiss him. Hold on- what did he just think? He wanted to kiss a stranger? Well, that wouldn’t be the first time he did that. 

This one was different, Tony thought. He noticed Rhodey and Bruce stealing glances Stephen and his was in between conversations. 

“Hey, Rhodes, wanna go grab a drink?” Bruce asked, wanting to leave the other two alone because he clearly saw how Tony was looking at Stephen.

“Sure man. I’ll be with ya in a sec,” Rhodey replied. He glanced in Tony’s direction one last time, a knowing look in his eyes. Tony smiled sheepishly at him and shooed him away.

“So, where are you from?” Tony inquired, wanting to get more information from Stephen.

“I’m from Nebraska. Grew up on a farm there, but got accepted to med school in New York,” Stephen said. 

“Sounds interesting. Wanna, uh, go get a drink or something? Heard they have the good stuff,” Tony asked. There was something about Stephen that he really liked, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it. He would have to figure it out himself.

“I’m not much of a drinker, but you can get me a water or something non-alcoholic,” Stephen said. Tony nodded and walked off to get the cups.  
As he was at the table where the alcohol was at, he noticed Stephen watching him out of the corner of his eye. He smirked and saw Stephen lift an eyebrow. 

‘That man is a work of art,’ Tony thought. He walked back over to Stephen and gave him the water cup. Stephen thanked him and took a sip.  
He wasn’t paying attention and missed one of Tony’s questions.

“... what?” Stephen said, unaware that Tony said something.

“Seems we need to go somewhere quieter so you can hear me, yeah?” Tony said, “Upstairs? It’s much quieter.” 

Tony tapped his ear, signaling to Bruce and Rhodey why they were leaving. He knew those two were watching them the entire time, but decided to let it slip.

Stephen nodded, and Tony led him through the crowd of people to the stairs. There were couples kissing all the way up, and Tony had to shoo them back down. Bruce made sure to lock all the doors except the bathroom, just in case.

Tony reached his own room upstairs and leaned against the doorframe.

“So, uh, what did you ask?” Stephen said, tugging at his collar. He seemed uncomfortable almost, but he had a glint in his eyes that he was liking Tony’s questions.

“Oh, I asked if you were staying with us,” Tony replied. 

“Yeah, I am. I’m staying the summer and then heading out to New York for school.” Stephen said, glancing around at his surroundings. “Better get used to this. Parties and whatnot.”

Tony smirked. “Yup, gotta get it in your head. If you hear any sort of loud music, you know what’s up.”

Stephen smiled, and Tony thought it was the best thing in the world. He vowed that he would make Stephen smile every day that he stayed with them. 

They stayed up there for hours, just chatting about their interests and Tony realized that he already really liked this Stephen guy. He was very interesting, and could keep up with Tony’s wit and sarcasm. Not everyday you find someone like that.

——————————————————————

Stephen thought Tony was.. unusual. Sure, he had looks and was extremely intelligent, but he came off as snarky and sarcastic. Nothing he didn’t know, as Tony was notorious for talking to the press like that. Stephen thought he was actually.. charming, almost. He had good banter and was fast on his feet to come up with a response to something Stephen had said, and he liked it. It was a nice change of pace, from Bruce or boring peers.

The music stopped at about 3 a.m, and that’s when they both realized how late it was and how everyone else had left. 

Bruce and Rhodey came trudging up the stairs, weary looks in their eyes.

“Holy shit, you guys are still talking!?” Bruce exclaimed, obviously drunk.

“Well, Nerd Boy, gotta find out as much information as I possibly can on him. Use it for blackmail later,” Tony smirked.

Stephen rolled his eyes, with a slight smile on his lips. He knew just how to mess with him, huh. More observant than Stephen thought. He made a mental note not to make Tony mad. Or sad. Or anything but happy.

Rhodey sighed. “You guys gotta go sleep. Tony, I know how you hate the dark, so I’m giving you a five minute warning. Stephen, uh, I’m not sure where you’re gonna sleep. Bruce will figure it out,” and with that, he promptly turned and went into his own room.

Tony watched as he left, an idea bubbling in his head. “Hey, Stephanie can sleep in my room tonight. There’s no point in going downstairs to sleep on a couch or something. We can figure it out tomorrow.” He said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Bruce mumbled something about figuring it out, and left for his room. Tony smirked and opened the door to his own room, and motioned Stephen inside. 

Stephen stopped midway through the doorway. “There’s only one bed,” he said, frowning.

“Something wrong with that?” Tony asked. He wasn’t letting Stephen get away so fast.

“N-no, I was thinking you’d have a couch or something in here, that’s all,” Stephen stuttered out. He went slightly pink in the cheeks. Tony counted it as a victory.

“Welp, there’s not, Stephanie, so guess we’ll be sharing, yeah?” Tony raised an eyebrow. Stephen rolled his eyes again and went to one side of the bed.

Tony walked over to the other and got under the covers. “Coming, Stephanie?” He asked. He was never gonna let Stephen hear a different name come out of his mouth when he mentioned his friend. 

For the third time that night, Stephen rolled his eyes. He slowly got under with Tony and made it so his back faced him.

“G’night, Steph,” Tony muttered. He rolled over and turned off the light. 

Very faintly, he heard a reply.

“Night.”


	2. Bonding :)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They just have some chill time together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eeeee !! I like how this one turned out- vv fun to write. Was smiling like an idiot doin it. Hope you enjoy!!

Stephen woke to light streaming through the curtains. He attempted to get up but felt a weight against his chest. He looked down and saw someone’s arm strewn across his chest. He momentarily freaked out until the last nights memories rushed back to his head

‘Stark. Stark, Stark, Stark. What am I going to do about you? You’ve really done it now Stephen. Gotten attached to someone you met yesterday. Even though it feels like you’ve known him forever the way you guys connecte- stop. Ugh. I can’t do this right now.’ Stephen thought to himself. This was going to be one big headache later.

He slowly moved the arm off of him in attempt to get out of Tony’s bed. The other person moved and turned sleepy eyes to Stephens direction.

“Hey, Stephanie. Sleep good?” He groggily said, probably not comprehending what he was talking about.

“I-uh, yeah. Yeah I did, thanks,” Stephen replied, “ I’m hungry. Got anything downstairs?”   
Tony looked over at him and nodded. Stehen went and sat up on the edge of the bed, his back facing Tony. He realized he was chilly and saw he didn't have his shirt on. Stephen started to think that Stark did something, but then remembered that he took it off because he got hot. 

“Hey, where's your shirt, Steph?” Tony asked, confused. Stephen turned to look at him and Tony blushed. He thought Stephen was hot in a shirt but with no shirt, Tony thought he was gonna pass out. Stephen cocked an eyebrow when he noticed Tony staring. 

“Mind passing that?” He pointed to his shirt next to Tony. He scrambled to get it and chucked it at Stephens face, hitting it right on target. He smiled triumphantly and was about to turn away when he saw a pillow being hurled at him. He tried to get out of the way but he wasn't fast enough. The pillow hit him in the side of the head, knocking him backwards. 

“Oh, its on,” Tony said. And with that, he proceeded to throw the pillow right back at Stephen, who caught it by two of the corners. Stephen then smacked Tony as hard as he possibly could upside the head with it, causing a giggle from both of them. 

“I win. I got you down!” Stephen said, a smile plastered on his face. He looked extremely proud of himself for beating Tony in a pillow fight. 

“Who said I was down?” Tony smirked, obviously hiding something behind his back. Stephen scrunched his face and looked at Tony. He pulled out another pillow and held it like Stephen was. Tony took his stance, a basic front foot back foot staggered kinda thing. 

“Ohohohoho, get ready for a SMACKDOWN, BITCH!” Stephen shrieked, not caring about the others in the house. Someone banged on the wall and yelled at them to shut up. They should be up by now, anyway. It was probably Bruce with his hangover. They both laughed and did not tone it down. 

One hit after another, both red in the faces, laughing really hard. Suddenly Stephen lost his footing from where he was advancing on Tony for the final blow. Tony was on his back, waiting for the impact, but saw Stephen trip. He landed above Tony, arms at the side of his head. Stephens leg was in between Tony’s knees, which were propped up against the sheets. They both were blushing like idiots, wide eyed and speechless. Finally Stephen broke the silence. 

“Oh, shit. Sorry, hold on,” Stephen said. He started to push himself up, but then the door slammed open, revealing an annoyed Rhodey and a, as their suspicions were correct, a hungover Bruce. They both stopped and stared at the other two on the bed. Rhodey raised an eyebrow, and smirked. 

“This is NOT what it looks like,” Tony said, even more red than he was before. Stephen quickly got up and nodded to back tony up. Both were still breathing a bit heavily from their earlier fight. 

“Sure, it isn’t . You guys woke both of us up with Tony’s screaming,” Rhodey smugly said, smiling wider. He loved to embarrass Tony every chance he got. It was very enjoyable for him to get all red and freaked out. 

“‘S a pillow fight,” Tony muttered. Both of their faces were still pink across their cheeks, breathing better than before.

“Sure it was, Tones. Mkay, I believe you,” Bruce sleepily said. It was obvious that neither of them did actually believe them, but it was funny that they caught them. 

Tony grumbled something as they left. He turned and got Stephens shirt. “Here ya go, Stephanie. ‘S your fault they think we were making out or fucking or something. I’m gonna go downstairs n grab some coffee. You want any?” Tony said, making his way to the stairs.

“Yeah, sure, thanks,” he said. Tony looked at him thoughtfully. “You seem like a guy who puts just a bit of milk in, and a whole shit ton of sugar..” Tony finally said. Stephen looked at him in surprise.

“How did you..” Tony just laughed and went downstairs. Stephen thought his laugh was the best sound he’s ever heard, and wanted to keep him laughing for as long as he lived. He smiled slightly to himself and followed Tony to the kitchen.

“So, are you sure you guys didn’t do anything?” Bruce asked, sipping his coffee with a smirk on his lips. Both Bedroom Boys rolled their eyes. 

“Damn, it’s like you guys are in sync. What kind of voodoo magic happened last night?” Rhodey laughed over a plate of pancakes. Stephen let out a snort. “Magic isn’t real, dumbass. Even Bruce knows that,” he said. Bruce proceeded to punch him in the shoulder, knocking his hand away from the mug he was reaching for.

“Asshole. So, lover boys, what’s the plan for today?” Bruce said, watching Stephen give him a dirty look. He stuck out his tongue in return. He heard Rhodey mutter “children.” Tony smiled at that, and was about to explain what he wanted to do for the day, when he heard Stephen curse.

“Shit shit shit shit, I’m a fucking idiot oh my god,” he breathed, obviously distressed about something. Tony looked over with a concerned expression. Stephens face was contorted in pain, clutching his hand.

“I spilled, ow ow ow..” he rushed over to the sink and turned on the cold water. Tony heard a sigh of relief and walked over to him. “You need to wrap it? It’s probably okay but just to be safe.” He gingerly took Stephens hand in his own and held it there softly. Tony looked up at him with concern in his eyes, and then looked back at Stephens hand. It was red and starting to swell a bit.

“Well, Stephanie, looks like you burned your hand!” Tony said, smirking.

“Yeah, no shit, Sherlock,” Stephen rolled his eyes, “ I need to put some stuff on it. You guys have a first aid kit or something?” 

“Uh, we’ve got Neosporin if that helps..” Bruce replied. “That’s fine. I don’t think I’ll be using this much for the next couple days, just to be safe. You guys can go do something without me, I’ll just go read a book or something,” Stephen said. 

Bruce went and got the ointment and helped Stephen apply it to his burn. He winced a bit, and Tony held Stephens arm for support. He glanced at his hand and then back up at Stephen, and smiled a bit. “You two should go grocery shopping, while I’ll stay with our burn victim here. We need food anyway,” Tony said.

Bruce and Rhodey nodded, grabbed their car keys, wallets, and left very fast. They seemed eager to leave the two Bedroom Boys alone, and Stephen had no clue as to why. 

“Wanna go chill upstairs? I’ve got a couple things you could do while resting your hand,” Tony suggested. Stephen nodded and was led upstairs, almost like the previous night. 

“So, we have tv, uh, could sleep, I dunno, we could, uh,”- Tony was cut off by Stephen saying that tv was good. He smiled up at Stephen and noticed how much taller he was than himself. Tony wondered if his head would fit under Stephens chin… he decided to test that theory after he went and grabbed the remote for the tv. 

Stephen was unaware on what Tony’s intentions were, and watched him as he shuffled closer from retrieving the tv clicker. He raised a brow and then widened his eyes in surprise. He smirked, because he realized how tiny Tony was. Tiny Tony.. that’ll stick. Tony had put his head under Stephens chin to see if he fit there. He did, in fact, fit, like a puzzle piece. 

“What are ya doin there, Tiny?” Stephen laughed, confused on as to why tony was doing this. “Well, Stephanie, I’m testing a theory. If I fits, I sits. In this case, I stands, but I’ll have to test it out when we’re sitting down,” he explained. Stephen made a noise of acknowledgement, and went to go lay down on Tony’s bed.

“So, Steph, you staying in my room with me?” Tony asked, sure of the answer. “Yes, Tiny. If it’s not a problem. Your bed is very comfortable,” Stephen responds.

“My new name is Tiny, huh,” Tony said, “ I don’t like it.” Stephen snorted and said, “Well I don’t like Stephanie but here we are I guess. You started this.” 

Tony rolled his eyes and climbed in with Stephen. “I’m testing my theory now. Move your legs, I need to see,” he said, moving over Stephen with some difficulty, as to not bump his hand. He positioned himself in between both of Stephens legs, sat down and leaned back. Just like he was standing, he fit perfectly.

“What did I tell you, Stephanie. If I fits, I sits,” he said. He could feel Stephen rolling his eyes at that remark, even though he couldn’t actually see his face. 

Tony turned on the tv, and together they watched Star Wars. 

—————————————————————

It was a while before Bruce and Rhodey came back from the store. They both wanted to leave the two Bedroom Boys alone, because they knew they liked each other. 

Bruce made a point to slam the door shut to show that they were home, in case they were doing something. 

Rhodey heard the tv on upstairs and went over to Tony’s room, where the sound was coming from. He slowly opened the door and was met with an adorable sight.

Tony’s head was on Stephen’s chest and was sprawled out between his legs. Stephens arms were wrapped around Tony’s torso, making it seem as if they were hugging. 

The Bedroom Boys were both sound asleep, despite the blaring tv. Rhodey snapped a few pictures with his camera to embarrass them both later, but for now, he just let them sleep. 

He shut the door with a soft click and walked off, a small smile on his lips.


End file.
